Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
04BRUSSELS432
2004-02-03 04:19:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Brussels
Cable title:  

EU HUMAN RIGHTS AGENDA PREVIEW: CHR-60 AND CHINA

Tags:  PHUM PREL MASS ETRD IR CH EUN USEU BRUSSELS 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 000432 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/02/2014
TAGS: PHUM PREL MASS ETRD IR CH EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: EU HUMAN RIGHTS AGENDA PREVIEW: CHR-60 AND CHINA

REF: A. A) DUBLIN 135

B. B) BRUSSELS 346 (ALL NOTAL)

Classified By: USEU POLOFF Harry O'Hara, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 000432

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/02/2014
TAGS: PHUM PREL MASS ETRD IR CH EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: EU HUMAN RIGHTS AGENDA PREVIEW: CHR-60 AND CHINA

REF: A. A) DUBLIN 135

B. B) BRUSSELS 346 (ALL NOTAL)

Classified By: USEU POLOFF Harry O'Hara, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: Further to ref A, European Council human
rights experts stressed the importance of earlier bilateral
consultations on country-specific resolutions, while noting
that a number of EU member state human rights experts
continue to have trouble dealing with the US "thematics"
paper. Recent EU discussions on lifting the EU arms embargo
on China (ref B) have led to some internal discomfort among
some EU human rights experts. End Summary

China
--------------


2. (C) The EU Secretariat has decided to split its internal
February 4 COHOM session into two meetings. In the morning,
the human rights experts will meet by themselves. In the
afternoon, in an unusual step, EU COHOM experts will be
joined by EU Asia experts (COASI) (agendas below). This is
being driven by recent thinking in the EU to lift the arms
embargo on China and the need to consider how to deal with
China at CHR-60. This is leading to unhappiness among some
Brussels-based EU human rights experts who are being subject
to human rights NGO pressure.


3. (C) One of our interlocutors noted that discussion about
lifting the Chinese arms embargo is being conducted in the
Political and Security Committee (PSC) without COHOM
participation. She said that the Irish Presidency/PSC had
asked for three papers on China from the Council: codes of
conduct, overall EU/China relations and China human rights.
She said that she had written the human rights paper and has
said while China is making progress on economic rights, it is
difficult to argue that progress is being made in political
and civil rights in China. EU support for a CHR resolution
this spring is going to be very difficult to see, she opined,
but in any case, it is highly unlikely that the EU will agree
to anything until after the next round of the EU/China human
rights dialogue in Dublin February 26-27. Furthermore,
anything that is decided on EU support for a CHR resolution
on China will most likely come from the Council of Ministers
(heads of state) level. We note that the Council
Secretariat's draft agenda (below) proposes China/human

SIPDIS
rights as a separate item to discuss with the US.

Draft US/EU COHOM agenda; Internal EU COHOM Agendas
-------------- --------------


4. (SBU) The Council Secretariat has suggested to the Irish
Presidency that the agenda for the February 11 US/EU COHOM
meeting cover: 1) CHR-60 prep (including the thematics
package); 2) CHR membership reform; 3) Corporate Social
Responsibility; 4) China/Human Rights; 5) "Caucus of
Democracies"; 6) Death Penalty. The Irish have agreed to this
proposed agenda and we can be expect to be asked for our
reaction before the February 4 EU human rights experts
meeting.


5. (U) The EU agenda for their internal meeting is: 1) Review
of draft norms for Transnational Corporations; 2) CHR-60
preparations with a focus of getting agreement for countries
that EU will seek resolutions or lesser measures; 3) US/EU
troika meeting (including an effort to get a response to the
US thematics paper); 4) preparation for other troikas
(EU/Canada experts meet in NY February 10); 5) internal
review of overall EU human rights policy; 6) Implementation
of guidelines on children in armed conflict; 7) Death penalty
in Belize, and 8) draft juvenile amicus curiae brief. The
last item would be to review a proposed EU friend of the
court brief in US courts opposing the application of the
death penalty against minors. For the second, joint
COHOM/COASI, meeting February 4 (afternoon),the EU will also
discuss 1) CHR-60, 2) preparing for the next round of the
EU/China human rights dialogue, and 3) implementation of EU
guidelines on torture.

EU/Iran human rights dialogue remains stalled
--------------


6. (C) One of our EU interlocutors confirmed that the
Iranians still have not replied to an EU request to go ahead
with a next round of the EU/Iran human rights dialogue (which
had been scheduled for March 8-9). Currently the EU is not
pushing for a response, we were told, pending what happens in
the February 20 Parliamentary election in Iran.

Schnabel